New cowboy on the block

[Zac Scott]

Zac arrived at the place where he would finally fulfill his desire for the one thing he had been yearning for: learning how to ride a horse. And this was the place, the Chateu something or the other. Zac really didn’t care about the name, he was here only to ride horses, or rather, learn how to ride them. Making his way around the mansion, he spotted a ranch outback, with a small wooden fence, possibly there to keep horses in, but intruders could still enter. Zac jumped the fence and made his way over towards the ranch. He saw a large wooden door, and made his way over there. He knocked, not once, but twice, and waited for a answer.

He had learned of this through the poster he saw attached to the street light on Senora Avenue just the other day as he was taking his afternoon stroll down the street, greeting the shop owners he has known since he was just a little boy. It caught his eye, due to it’s unusual color, red, and the picture of a horse on it. And ironically, it offered horse lessons, and that too for free. He was assured that he would learn how to ride a horse, now that his mom and dad wouldn’t nag him constantly for him to work for the money needed.

[Angelline Devorez]

Angelline smiled in success as she got the last of the stallions into the training ring. The small wooden corral was the new home for five horses that her dad had just bought. It would be her job to get them used to life at the mansion. She didn't like the term break that most trainers used, so her methods were a bit different. Wiping the sweat from her brow as she put her hair up into a high ponytail she leaned over to pick up the water bottle she had tossed to the side. Taking a large drink from the bottle her eyes sparkled in anticipation for the hard days ahead.

She was about to walk into the small pen when she heard a knocking coming from the doors of the stable. Curious she put down the bottle and ran over to open the wooden doors. Peering through the small gap she made she stared curiously at the unfamiliar boy in front of her. "Yes? Can I help you?"

[Zac Scott]

As Zac’s icy blue eye’s met this girl’s golden eyes, Zac lost all track of thought. Such beautiful eyes, who did they belong to? Shaking his head a bit to get back into the game, he smiled, “yeah, I’m here for the horse lessons.” Zac chuckled a bit, before continuing, “I mean, the horse riding lessons. I’m Zac Scott. If you would open the door a bit, maybe we could shake hands.” And maybe he could see more of this beauty hiding behind the door. If she was teaching him how to ride a horse, he knew he wouldn’t have been able to do it. His mind would be on her the whole time, and that be a major setback.

He looked around a bit inside, and saw a rather black stallion standing to the side from the rest. It was a beautiful one, and Zac had to comment on it. “That black stallion, there. It’s beautiful.” he said, pointing at it. He didn’t know that this was one was Shadow, this mysterious girl’s favorite companion.

[Angelline Devorez]

Angelline's eyes lit in understanding as the boy described that he was here for horse riding lessons. "Oh yes come right in!" she exclaimed pushing the door to the side so that he could come in. She turned around to introduce herself and noticed his eyes. They were such an interesting shade of blue. "Well Zac it's nice to meet you. I'm Angelline, and you have and interesting shade of blue for your eyes." Realizing how weird that might sound she laughed nervously and went over to the side to grab a saddle. "Sorry if that sounds weird, but that's one of the first things I notice about a person their eyes. After all it is a gateway into a person's true self."

As she grabbed the saddle from the rack she turned at his comment about a black stallion. Seeing his finger pointed at Shadow she laughed and nodded her head. "Yes, that's Shadow, my best friend. I got him a few years ago as a gift." Once she got the saddle from the rack Angelline pointed to the occupied stalls. "So which horse would you like to ride? Take your pick."

[Zac Scott]

Zac noticed that the girl’s eyes widened as she understood why he was there. She pushed open the door, and he made his way inside. Hearing the comment about his eyes, he smiled. “Yours are beautiful as well. And if they are a gateway into a person’s true self, then I think I got one heck of a teacher.” He couldn’t resist saying that no matter how cheesy it sounded. It was true, and that’s all that mattered. He walked around, looking at the various horses. They came in all shapes and sizes . He could have sworn he saw two blue spots on a brown horse just a minute ago. Walking back over to Angelline he said “Well, I think I’m ready to get started.”

“it’s a very beautiful horse, if I must say so. And if you don’t mind, I’ll pick that brown one right there. It looks like it wouldn’t harm a thing in the world.” He said, observing the horse with a inspective eye. “One more thing, do you have any boyfriend that might barge in here and try and kill me for learning how to ride a horse with you?” Push.

[Angelline Devorez]

Angelline didn't really get his comment about a teacher but she shrugged her shoulders. What can I expect. Boys have such odd thought processes. she thought "Thanks for the compliment, but please don't use flattery on me. That'll be my first rule to you." . Hoisting the saddle onto her shoulder she walked over to Shadow and gently stroked his nose while whispering soothing words to calm the horse down. He was very spirited and tended to want to attack anybody new that he saw.

Hearing Zac's approaching footsteps she took Shadow's reins in hand and walked him outside so she wouldn't have to worry about him. Looking at the brown mare he had chosen she grinned and nodded her head. "Good choice. Cassie's one of our more mild tempered mares. You'll do good with her as your partner." Angelline handed the saddle to him and asked him to hold it as she jogged over to Cassie's stall and opened it. Taking the reins in hand she led her outside to stand a few yards away from Shadow. "As for your question yes I have a boyfriend. Hopefully he won't kill you though, after all this is part of my job, helping people learn how to ride. Now come here please and I'll teach you how to put on the saddle."

[Zac Scott]

Zac smiled, as he saw her whispering words to Shadow. “So he’s like your protector as well, huh?” He looked around for a bit, back at the brown mare he had chosen to ride just a few moments ago, then back at angelline. “Don’t worry, that wasn’t flattery, it was the truth. And I’ll keep that in mind, teach.” He made his way over to Angelline, and stroked Shadow’s mane, hopefully he didn’t mind. If he did, that would be a big problem. He whispered, “Hey there buddy. Ready to make me a friend? Hopefully you are.” he winked, hopefully the horse had understood him. Sure it was perfectly logical if shadow didn’t, but one could still try.

“Cassie’s a wonderful name. Who thinks of them?” He said, as he went over to Cassie and stroked her mane. He winked, as if a boy winking at a hot girl. It was a girl, so why not try flattery on her? All girls like flattery, or well, most of them do. He opened the stable that Cassie was in, and tried to grab her reins, but Angelline had beat him to it. She walked Cassie outside, putting her side by side with Shadow. He smirked at the thought. 2 horses, side by side, seeming as if they are about to go on a date. He nodded as he heard angelline’s comment, and made his way over there.

[Angelline Devorez]

"You could say that, but really it all comes down to his nature," Angelline said as she went back inside to grab the bridle. Taking Cassie's reins she tied her to the nearest post so she wouldn't be able to get away as they put on the bridle and saddle. She was focused on her work now and didn't hear much of what Zac said. The horses came first before the students, it was a rule around here, and it was one she could easily abide by. Whispering soft words into Cassie's ear she slipped the bridle on making sure it was secure behind her ears and the bit was firmly in her mouth without any harm coming to the gentle mare.

She finished just in time to here him ask about the horses names. "Our whole family comes up with names. Whenever we get new horses we each take turns naming them. Cassie's the name of one of my friend's back home and this mare reminded me of her." Seeing him walk over she motioned for him to stand on the left side of Cassie. "The first thing you want to do is to check that all the hair on her back is lying flat. If not here's a comb to solve that problem," she said handing him one of the grooming combs. "Cassie doesn't have any sores so once you've done that place the saddle blanket on her whiters and slide it back so it's firmly on her back. Then reach underneath her and grab the girth of the saddle and fasten the buckles and clips into place. Don't tie it too tight. Just tight enough so that the saddle won't move when you ride." Angelline slipped into her tutorial mode easily giving the directions in an even voice that spoke of years of experience.

[Zac Scott]

Zac watched her with a dumbfounded expression. He understood nothing she had just said, and when she finished, he busted out laughing. “Come on, you cant possibly expect me to remember all that.” He said, wiping the sweat from his forehead. Okay, there wasn’t any sweat, but he just did that to show emphasize on his joke. Hopefully she liked a good joke, okay, well it wasn’t really a joke, more like the truth. He really didn’t remember anything she said, as he said before, and didn’t expect himself to. This was all new to him, and all he had learned so far was names. And that this girl had a boyfriend, which saddened him.

Suddenly, something from school sparked in his mind. “Do you know Alexander McCloud?” He asked, remembering the announcement from earlier. There was a announcement at school by the principal that a guy named Alexander McCloud had left for personal reasons, and that he may come back when he feels like it, and he knew for sure that he didn’t see Angelline there, and he didn’t know who Alexander McCloud was, so he wanted to find out.

He didn’t give her a chance to answer before he asked his next question. “Can we discuss this over a coke or something?”

[Angelline Devorez]

Angelline saw his dumbfounded expression and sighed knowing she had gone overboard on one of her lessons again. Her dad always joked about that, but she couldn't helped it. She had been raised alongside the horses, and felt more of a bond with them than with people sometimes. "Sorry, I tend to get a bit carried away there. Let's start from the beginning again," she said, but heard his questions.

A bit startled by his sudden change of plans she cocked her head slightly to the side. "Um...didn't you want a riding lesson?" she asked, confusion laced in her question. "And yes I know Ace. He's my boyfriend, but lately I've been stuck at home doing a few things so I haven't gone to school since...the beginning of it I think."

[Zac Scott]

He knew that she saw his expression as she sighed. “Ed, don’t worry about it,” He said. He wasn’t really interested in the lesson anymore. Not as much as he was in Angelline currently. Her boyfriend?! Ace McCloud is her boyfriend?! Well, isn’t he a good boyfriend, leaving behind a angel like Angelline. Zac tried to fake it off, and ask “So where did he go? And when will he be back?” He wanted to have a word with this Ace, ever since he heard that he knocked out the team’s linebacker, ultimately breaking his nose. Ace seemed like a good guy if he did that, but Zac still wanted to talk to him. He leaned forward, waiting for Angelline’s response.

[Angelline Devorez]

"To tell you the truth I'm not sure. I haven't heard a word from him in a while. The last time I heard from him was when he came to apologize for kissing another girl and giving me a gift." Angelline's thoughts drifted to the bracelet safely tucked away in her jewelry box. If she wore it now it'd get dirty so she kept it in it's case in her room. Coming back to the present she smiled and started to take off Cassie's bridle. "It's okay. I'm sure he'll call or something. I'm not sure what he's been up to lately. I hope he's not kissing another girl though. I don't know how much longer I can hold up for," she said with a small laugh trying to mask the truth in her laugh.

[Zac Scott]

“Wait, what? So you weren’t in school today, so that means, you didn’t hear the announcement which said, ‘Alexander McCloud has left for personal reasons, and will be back when he feels better. May god be with him,”.” He paused, to take a breath. “You didn’t know he left town for….like…..ever?” Zac was confused. He wanted to meet Alexander more than ever now.

[Angelline Devorez]

Angelline's hand froze in the process of taking off Shadow's saddle. Turning blank eyes to face Zac she asked in a stuttering voice what he meant. She didn't want to know the truth...she didn't think she could take it anymore. It was almost like some sick being loved to watch her as she broke down little by little. "Zac...what...are you serious?"

[Zac Scott]

Zac saw that Angelline froze, just plain out froze. Maybe he shouldn’t have said anything, and should have let her find out by herself, but it’s all been said and done, and he couldn’t stop now. She was close to breaking down. He lowered his head, and walked over to her, and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Yes, Angelline. I’m serious.” He gave her a hug at that instant, and whispered, “I know how it feels.” Sure, he was lying, but he needed to confront her, and hopefully she wouldn’t slap him.